Work in progress
by jeffhardyfan722
Summary: This really is just a work in progress that I am hoping to write more on when I can get the time. Warnings are inside!


So, tell me what you think of it. Does it all out suck or could I possibly be onto something? Is it redundant? Am I giving away too much in the beginning?

**Title: Untitled for now (I'm open to suggestions though)  
Author: Me  
Genre: Het (but that could change)  
Rating: M (just to be safe)  
Characters: All OC's, except for the mention of real life serial killer and victim  
Warnings: hinted at abuse and rape, details from a real life murder  
Authors Note: I tried to put all character thoughts into italics...hope I didn't miss any.**

**Chapter 1**

_London, August 1862_

Cooper slowly strolled down the darkened street, the taste of his latest victim still fresh on his tongue. He turns the corner just in time to see a young boy dart out into the middle of the road and in the path of a fast moving coach. Without a second thought Cooper uses his enhanced speed to cross the street and grab the boy out of harms way. He held the terrified shaking boy soothingly in his arms. He silently considered taking the child back to the deserted home that he was currently residing in, thoughts of how good the boy's blood would taste as it caressed his tongue before sliding down his throat teased his mind.

Whimpering words dragged him from his thoughts, "I didn't know what to do. Daddy was yelling at Mommy and then he hit her…I was scared so I ran outside."

Cooper felt his temper flare at the child's words. He knew such things happened all of the time, but to him it was an atrocity worse than the way he fed from his victims.

"Where is your home," he gently asked the boy.

The child pointed behind them at the pale blue two story home. Cooper turned and now that he was focused he could hear the shouting coming from the home. Well he could hear the man shouting. The woman was crying, a low pitiful sound that would have broken Cooper's heart if it would have been beating.

Cooper carried the child up the steps to his home, "Do you want me to help your Mommy?"

The sobbing child sniffed and nodded his head in response to Cooper's question.

Cooper smiled, "Good, though it would be rude for me to go into your home uninvited. Can you invite me inside so I can help your Mommy?"

The boy nodded again and Cooper put him down so that he could step inside the door, "Come in."

Cooper offered the boy a gentle smile and stepped inside the house. He turned and quietly closed the door.

"I'm going to help your mommy now. Can you be a good boy and go to your room until your Mommy comes to get you?"

The child smiled and nodded. He turned and quickly went to his room, closing the door behind him.  
Cooper let the smile slip from his lips and allowed the kindness in his eyes to be replaced by a dark coldness that would scare any human that had decent common sense. He followed the man's voice down the dark hallway and into the sitting room. At first glance he saw a woman laying on the floor with a blossoming bruise on her left cheek as well as a bloody lip. The man stood over her yelling obnoxious insults that even the devil would cringe at. The man never knew what hit him as Cooper stealthily moved up behind him from the door and spun him around catching him with a knockout punch.

The woman lifted her head as the yelling was abruptly stopped. She gasped as her eyes focused first on her abusive husband lying on the floor and second on the man who had shut him up. Cooper offered her his hand to help her stand, which she cautiously accepted.

"Has this been going on a long time," he asked softly.

The woman nodded.

"Do you want me to take him to the constable's office for tonight?"

"Please," she sobbed.

"As you wish. Everything will be alright," Cooper whispered as he easily lifted the man up and slung him over his shoulder like a sack of grain.

"I sent your son to his room. He was really shaken up and did not need to see this. Make sure you check on him after I am gone."

"Yes sir," she said.

Cooper nodded and with ease carried the man out of the house. As he stepped down off of the last step a gleam caught his eye and he stooped to pick up the shiny object. It was a ring made of some light colored stone. It was smooth and cool to the touch. Cooper felt drawn to it so he stuck the ring in his pocket and continued on to the constable's office.

_Ohio- Present Day, Sunset_

Cooper gasped unnecessarily as he bolted upright in his bed. He had not thought about that night in a long time. He looked down at the ring that he had found that night. He had put it on after assuring the husband that if he ever abused his wife or child again, that he would know it and would find him one dark night and make him wish that he had the ability to die quickly. Cooper let a smile slide upon his lips as he remembered how the man had pissed himself when he had flashed his fangs at him in a silent threat. The vampire sighed as questions began to creep into his mind. The main one being, 'Why did he dream about the night he had found the ring?' Little did he know, but elsewhere in the city three others were experiencing similar dreams.

**Chapter 2**

_London, November 1888_

The cool autumn air gently breezed by his already cold body as he walked through the back alleys of Whitechapel. Malicious anger poured off of Carter in waves as he frantically searched for the person who had chosen his hunting grounds to commit their atrocious murders on. He turned a corner that led to Miller's Court and instantly the scent of freshly spilled blood assailed his nose. He hurried towards the scent, homing in on the specific location as he moved. It took him mere moments to locate the source.

He quietly pushed open the door to the room and took in the grisly scene before him. Even as a vampire Carter knew that this was the most horrendous act he had ever seen committed against another being. He only hoped that he would never come upon such a scene again in his immortal life. His attention refocused as the murderer turned towards him. Carter felt his eyes shimmer with the colors of anger and blood lust as he looked at all of the blood that had been spilled by this man in such a small space. He growled as he moved forward, grabbing the man and savagely tearing into his neck. Carter quickly pulled away, not wanting to taste any of the man's blood. He let the rapidly dying man drop to the floor as he once again took in the scene that had been created. A woman, whom Carter recognized as one of the many ladies of the night, lay sprawled on the bed. Her throat had been slashed open, nearly decapitating her, and a large cut had opened up her abdomen. It looked like the sick bastard had been using the poor girl as an example of how to correctly remove the internal organs of the unclean. The sight was enough to make Carter want to empty what little blood he had in his stomach over in the corner of the tiny room.

Carter was about to reach over to smooth his hand over the woman's open eyes when a glimmer from the nightstand caught his eye. He picked up the object and quickly inspected it. He was unsure of why he completed his next act which was to slide the smooth light green band onto his ring finger. He felt a light pulse go through his body causing an unnecessary gasp to escape from his lips. He gently shook his head before returning his focus to the woman and closing her eyes. Carter turned and picked up the body of the killer and using all the strength and speed he possessed, he quickly carried the man's body to the nearest trash dumping site. Under cover of darkness Carter ripped apart the man's body. He tossed each piece into the trash pile, discarding the murderer's body with about as much care as the man had given his victims, which was none.

_OH- Present Day, Sunset_

Carter awoke with a queasy feeling in his stomach. He had been so sickened by the scene in that small room that he had refused to feed for days afterwards. Unknown to Carter, and like Cooper mere seconds before him, he wondered why he had dreamt of that awful night long ago. He glanced down at the ring that he still wore and felt the weight and memories that surrounded it pushing at his mind.

**Chapter 3**

_OH- Present Day, 3 a.m._

Chance lay awake on his bed, sheet pulled up just far enough to barely cover his hips. He had tried to sleep, but his mind kept racing with remembrance and thoughts of what the future may hold. Flashes of his run a week ago rushed to the front of his mind, forcing Chance to review them. He had been running just on the inside of the wood line when he heard a woman scream. He tentatively sniffed the air and caught the faint scent of a woman mixed heavily with fear. Chance ran in the direction of the scream, using his nose to track the woman. He could still hear her crying out for help, her pleas becoming more insistent the closer he got. Finally, he stumbled upon the woman and she was not alone.

Two men were with her and from what Chance could gather their intentions were not in the young woman's best interests. The woman had been tackled to the ground and was now being held down with her hands pinned above her head by one man. The other man moved quickly, removing her clothes, undoing his jeans, and preparing to push them down. The woman kicked the man, knocking him backwards. The man angrily cursed the woman and backhanded her right across her cheek. The force of the blow snapped the woman's head to the side, turning her face perfectly for Chance to see the immediate damage to her beauty. Her cheek was already beginning to swell and Chance could see and smell the blood coming from her busted lip. The man returned to his previous position and finished undoing his pants. Chance wasted no time in calling on his natural power when he saw the man change his position to a more intrusive one. Skin spilt, bones broke and shifted, solid black fur and deadly sharpened claws erupted, along with yellow-green eyes which replaced his normal emerald green eyes.

Chance silently circled around, crept up behind the man holding the woman's arms, and pounced onto the man's back effectively pinning him to the ground. The man screamed as did his friend when the big cat let out a roar. The man, who had his pants down, grasped by a sudden state of panic, didn't even stand before trying to get away. Chance watched him try to crawl away with his pants down around his knees. The man beneath Chance cried out for his friend to help him, but was ignored. Chance lowered his mouth down to the man's exposed neck, his open mouth hovered over the man's jugular vein, and barely touched his teeth to the skin. He could hear the man beginning to cry and decided that maybe he had had enough. Chance stepped off of the man and went to sit by the woman. For a few moments the man just lay there, unsure of what to do. Chance growled at the man causing him to finally act and scamper away like the rodent that Chance considered him to be.

The woman lay on her side crying, still in shock from what had been about to happen to her. He nuzzled her hair in a comforting gesture and in her state she blindly grabbed onto him, hugging the big cat to her like he was a favored teddy bear. He lay down next to her, paws folded under him and stomach against the ground. He snuffled noisily next to her ear causing her to pull away and look at him.

She gasped partially in fright and partially in awe of the magnificent creature that had saved her. She raised her other hand and gently smoothed it over the black furred head that now stared down at her. She gently dug her fingers into the fur, which caused Chance to purr. Like any common house cat, he too loved to feel fingers exploring his fur. Chance had to focus and help her to get home safely. He stood, retrieved her clothes for her and nudged her leg repeatedly until she stood and began to redress herself.

Chance heard the woman whisper, "I'm scared."

He padded back over to her and bumped her hand with his head. She stooped down to pet him, but he quickly moved to nuzzle her neck and snuffle loudly in her ear again, which caused her to giggle. He licked her arm and gently nudged her legs again, hoping she would follow him. This time she took the hint and followed him out of the woods. In turn he walked with her to her house. She tried to get him to come inside, but he just used his strength and large body to push her into the opened door before walking away. When he was back inside the wood line and close to his home he allowed his body to change back to human form.

As he stepped onto his back porch he noticed something laying on the door mat. His body immediately went on alert. He sniffed the air and found no lingering scent nor was there any visible sign that anyone had been anywhere near his home. Chance stooped down, picked up the ring, and walked inside his house. Curiosity got the better of him and he tried the ring on. A low growl escaped Chance as he immediately felt a boost to his natural power.

Chance shook his head slightly to bring his thoughts back to the here and now. He wondered how the ring had made it to his porch and why? A feeling that he could not immediately describe swept over him and he knew that his life would change drastically in the very near future.

**Chapter 4**

Chase restlessly turned in her bed as her dream seemed to come alive while she slept. It had started off relatively simple. Chase, Chloe, and Trevor had been walking by the lake talking and laughing when a sound off to their right startled them. They peered into the darkness of the night, but saw nothing. When they turned back to continue their walk, three men stood before them. Two of the men had skin the color of moonlight while the third man had lightly tanned skin. All of them appeared to be around six feet tall and in great physical shape. The tanned man seemed to be slightly taller with short black hair and emerald green eyes. The man next to him had short dirty blonde hair and copper colored eyes. The last man had short medium brown hair with crystalline blue eyes.

Chase felt drawn to them, like she should already be a part of them. She noticed that all three men wore a light green ring and that each ring was glowing. Her body tensed when the three men whispered her name. She reached back to grab the hands of her friends, but felt nothing. Chase turned to look for Chloe and Trevor, but they were no where in sight. She turned her attention back to the three men to find that they had taken a couple of steps towards her. She felt panic rising within her, but decided that live or die she was not going to run. She set her feet and raised her hands, ready to fight for her life.

"We're not here to hurt you, just to let you know that we need you," the blonde haired man said.

"You are part of our destiny," said the black haired man.

"We shall find each other very soon," the brown haired man informed her.

The air around them shimmered and they disappeared leaving a very confused and frightened Chase standing alone by the lake. She frantically looked around for her friends, calling their names as she went. She walked by the stairs leading up away from the lake's shore she thought she saw the air shimmer again and quickly focused her eyes on the spot. She saw a ring made of light green stone and picked it up. Chase ran her fingers over it, feeling the cool smoothness of the ring beneath her fingertips. She slowly slipped the ring on her finger, her eyes widening as it began to glow. She tried to take the ring off, but it wouldn't move.

_"You accepted your place when you put the ring on. This ring shall never be removed. You must not let fear keep you from meeting them…it is your destiny Chase."_

The disembodied voice floated on the air around her as it spoke. The words that it spoke were unsettling, but the soft smooth tone of the voice made Chase feel safe and warm. A rapid buzzing sound jerked Chase from the dream. She rolled over and slapped her hand against the top of her alarm clock, effectively turning it off. Chase groaned as she sat up and thought of all the things she had to do today. _I guess that includes meeting my destiny,_ Chase thought as she rubbed her hands over her face, stopping abruptly when she felt a cool smoothness rub against her cheek. She slowly lowered her hand and looked down frightened and astonished at the sight before her. There on her ring finger was the ring from her dream. She tentatively touched it while silently wondering where it came from and how the hell it had gotten on her finger. She looked over at the door to her room only to find that the chain and deadbolt were still in place, just the way she left it last night.

Unsure of what to make of her dream and the situation with the ring, Chase pushed it temporarily to the side. She had to get ready for class and had no time to contemplate this new development in her life. Two hours later she was leaving her room and headed for her first class of the day.

**Chapter 5**

_Next night, 8 pm_

"…and they just disappeared," Chloe asked as she walked beside Chase and Trevor towards the entrance into Obsession.

Chase nodded her head, "Yep. Then I went to look for you guys, but all I found was this ring." She held up her hand to show her friends the ring that she was talking about.

Trevor let out a low whistle, "That was on your hand when you woke up? If you didn't put it on then how did it get there," he asked as he pointed to her finger.

"I don't know Trevor, that's why I'm just a little freaked out about this," Chase said as she paid the cover charge and stepped into the club. The loud thumping beat of the music encompassed her as she waited for Chloe and Trevor. She didn't have to wait long and soon the three friends were making their way through the sea of bodies towards the bar. The three friends ordered their drinks, chatting while waiting for their order. Chase felt a presence behind her causing the muscles in her back to tense up. She waited to see if the person was going to keep moving, but they didn't which only served to frustrate her. She spun around ready to ask whomever was standing there to please move.

Chase turned ready to make her request, but the words never made it passed her lips. Standing before her was one of the men from her dream. The brown haired man with pale skin and the prettiest blue eyes Chase had ever seen. A faint glow caught her eye and she looked down at his hand to see his ring giving off a faint glow. Chase immediately darted her eyes to her own ring only to discover that it was giving off the same soft glow as his was.

"What…? How…? Who are you," Chase asked rapidly.

The man stepped closer to her, gently took her hand in his, and with a half bow he rolled his eyes upward to meet hers, "My name is Carter," he said before lightly kissing the back of her hand. "…and you are," he let the question trail off and waited for her answer.

Chase gave him her most award winning smile, "My name is Chase."

She heard someone clear their throat beside her and she turned to see a questioning look on Chloe's face.

She leaned close to Chloe's ear and whispered, "He is one of the men from my dream."

Chloe pulled away and looked at the guy again, _Damn, wish I had men like that in my dreams! _ While Chloe made no attempt to hide her perusal of the new guy, Chase had leaned over to whisper the same information to Trevor. Trevor took one look at the guy and gave a soft huff of dislike in response. He turned and walked off towards the dance floor, without ever saying one word to Carter.

Carter watched as the young man walked away, _jealousy is never a good start to a potential friendship._ He then looked back at the young ladies in front of him, taking great pride in the fact that both were checking him out. Though, it looked like Chase's friend was being way more open about that fact.

"Is this a friend of yours," Carter asked as he gestured towards Chloe.

"Oh, yes this is Chloe. Chloe this is Carter," Chase said, her cheeks lightly tinged with pink at forgetting her manners.

Carter turned to Chloe, and with the same gesture that he had used with Chase, he greeted her, "Nice to meet you."

Chloe gave him a shy smile, "Nice to meet you too."

Carter smiled and turned back to Chase, "Was the boy a friend of yours too? I would have liked to introduce myself to him as well."

"Boy? Oh you mean Trevor. I'm not sure what got into him, but no worries he'll come back in a bit," Chase said.

Carter slightly nodded his head at the information. He was unsure of how to broach the subject of the rings. He was desperately hoping that the girl knew something about them and what their purpose was.

"May I sit here," he asked.

"No," Chase said. "Cause we're gonna move to a table, so that we can easily talk to each other," she finished.

Chase and Chloe watched the emotions rapidly change on Carter's face. From surprise to relief at her words. Carter however, knew that he was only expressing the emotions for the girls' sake. It was a habit that he had kept around, perfected, and made great use of when attempting to lure prey to him. He merely smiled at the girls knowing that it would further lull them into a sense of comfort around him. He followed the girls through the club to the table of their choosing. He deliberately inhaled their scent as he walked behind them. At first their scents mingled together in an array of combinations, until he focused first on one girl, then the other and separated them. Chloe smelled of fresh lavender and calming chamomile in contrast to Chase who smelled of refreshing orange blossoms and warm vanilla. He was certain that if he ever wanted to he could easily track either of them down.

Chase and Chloe reached the table mere seconds before Carter and took seats across from each other, insuring that when Trevor returned he would have to sit across from Carter. Carter smiled to himself, _Female strategy at its best. They are unknowingly forcing their friend to acknowledge my presence. That boy is out matched when it comes to these two girls._

Carter sat silently as the girls sipped their drinks and talked about their day. He was content for now to listen to their conversation and get a 'feel' for them. A light nudge to his arm brought him back to focus.

"So Carter, how did you get your ring," Chloe asked.

He leaned back in his chair, crossed his arms, and gave her an appraising look, "I found it a couple of years ago. How did you get yours Chase?"

"Well…it is slightly more complicated than 'finding it.' My ring appeared on my hand after a dream I had this morning, which included you, two other guys, my friends, and myself," Chase replied.

Carter's mouth eased into a smirk at her answer, "I was in a dream you had this morning," he teased.

Chase didn't pick up the teasing lilt in his voice, "Yeah. You, me, my friends, and two other guys," she repeated slowly thinking that he didn't hear her the first time. "There was a guy that had skin like yours, which is lovely by the way, that said 'we're not here to hurt you just to let you know that we need you.' The other guy said that I was a part of yours and theirs destiny, and you said that we would all find each other very soon."

Carter nodded, "So just the four of us have rings?"

"Looks like it. Anyways, when I woke up from the dream the ring was already on my finger. It kind of freaked me out since all of my doors and windows were still closed and locked," Chase finished.

Carter sighed, "Its not fair."

"What's not fair," Chloe asked.

He flashed a flirtatious smirk at her, "That there will be three guys and one girl. Why couldn't it be three girls and me or two girls and two guys?"

He loved the light blush that covered the girl's cheeks as they picked up his train of thought. Now that is such a sweet picture. At that moment another sweet picture popped into his head as he pictured himself feeding from the willing girls in front of him. He felt his body beginning to respond and quickly pushed the thought and image out of his mind.

He saw Chase and Chloe stand up and look at him, "You wanna dance?"

**Chapter 6**

_He saw Chase and Chloe stand up and look at him, "You wanna dance?"_

If Carter would have had the capability he would have blushed, instead he smiled and nodded. He stood and followed them out onto the dance floor. He waited for the girls to decide who was going to dance with him first. Chloe moved in front of him, turned so that her back was against his front, and began to rub her body against his in time with the music. Carter was not surprised by her choice of position. What really sent his mind whirling, was when he felt another body moving against him from behind. He glanced back to see Chase swaying her body as close to his body as she could get. He wasn't sure what he should be doing so he just stood there.

As the song progressed, Carter began to realize that he was doing exactly what they wanted him to do. He was their dance pole and, they were making damn good use of him, much to the delight of the other ladies in the club. At one point they had simultaneously ran their hands over his body as they lowered their own bodies close to the floor. Another time, and let's be honest, one of his favorite times, was when Chloe placed her right hand on his shoulder, lifted her left leg up next to his hip (which Chase held onto), and leaned her body back a bit to grind her hips against his. Carter silently prayed to whatever God would listen to help him to not embarrass himself right here and now when he felt her do that. _These two are enough to make any vampire's blood boil with lust. If I don't take control soon they will certainly lead me to my second death!_

He grabbed Chase's hand and pulled her around and forward so that she was right beside of Chloe and, held her there. He placed his other arm behind Chloe's back and leaned forward, forcing her upper body back even more. He rocked his hips against hers as he also turned his head to look at Chase. He slid the hand that was holding Chase up to the nape of her neck, and pulled her in for a breath stealing kiss. A satisfying rush of male pride swept through him when both girls moaned at the sudden change in his actions.

Chloe could feel his excitement as he moved against her, encouraging her to match him move for move. Chase was too busy to notice that Carter and Chloe were practically having sex on the dance floor as she was swept up into Carter's kiss. She felt his warm tongue invade her mouth as well as the taste of cool sweet peppermint.

Carter himself was on sensory overload. He could feel both of their warm bodies pressed so close to him that air was barely able to get between them. The heat coming from Chloe's center was especially tantalizing and he could smell her arousal increase as he moved against her. His attention turned to Chase and how her mouth tasted like he had just took a bite of warm cherry pie. The soft mewling moans that they made reached his ears in wave upon beautiful wave. He broke the kiss with Chase and pulled Chloe's upper body back up close to his chest. He moved his hand up into Chase's hair and gently pulled her head back, exposing her throat to him. He bent his head and placed soft kisses along the smooth column of her throat. Chloe did not miss the opportunity to lean over to nip and lick along his neck as well. Carter growled softly and lifted his head from Chase's neck. He turned to Chloe and claimed her lips in a short but effective kiss, as if to say that he had noticed and appreciated her attention.

Loud clapping began and quickly caught their attention. The three looked up to see that the song had ended and almost everyone was watching them. Carter had a slightly dazed look in his eyes from the dance but the girls had matching mischievous smiles on their lips as they turned to look at him.

He lightly shook his head to regain his focus and glared at them, "Minxes, that's what you both are," he growled to them softly.

Although the term was usually offensive, the girls knew from his smile and the playful glint in his eyes that he didn't mean it as an insult. They each took one of his hands and led him back to the table. They sat for a minute trying to cool off from their little show, slowly sipping on their drinks. Moments later Trevor came walking up to the table and sat in the seat across from Carter.

"Well well, that was quite a show you three put on out there," Trevor said.

"They teamed up against me. I could have used some back up out there," Carter whined.

Trevor was unsure of why, but his initial impression of this guy had not sat well with him and, the 'almost' sex show that he just put on with his two best female friends out on the dance floor didn't help matters any. However, Trevor could not stop the smile or the laughter that followed the man's comment. Chase, Chloe, and Carter watched as Trevor slowly smiled then began to laugh uncontrollably at Carter's comment.

Trevor caught their looks and fought to reign in his laughter, "Sorry man but, you are on your own. I learnt my lesson a long time ago in regards to going along with what they want…that includes dancing."

Carter tried to play it up some more, "You mean you won't even try to help me if they do that again," he asked in his best 'I'm scared' voice.

Trevor smiled and shook his head no.

Carter gulped unnecessarily before changing his expression completely and smirking at the confident girls, "Guess I'll just have to come up with a plan of action to counter theirs then."

The girls raised an eyebrow at his statement, for which they only received that same smirk in return.

Carter then turned his attention to Trevor and held out his hand, "By the way I'm Carter."

Trevor didn't want to but, he accepted the handshake, "I'm Trevor." _I'll at least give this guy the benefit of the doubt and try to be nice to him for now._

The small group sat and talked for a while, the conversation eventually turning back to the rings. The group tossed around ideas on how they might be able to gather more information on the rings until a suggestion came from an unlikely source.

"Why don't we just meet up at the campus library tomorrow and see if we can find any information about them there," Trevor suggested.

"That's a great idea, but I'm afraid I can't join you until 7:30 p.m. or so. I have some business that must be taken care of before I can meet you," Carter explained.

"I agree that's a great idea Trevor and that's ok Carter that you can't meet us until later cause I don't think I'll be functioning until at least 1 or 2 p.m," Chase said.

"Its settled then. I'll meet you at the library around 7:30 tomorrow evening. However, since I have an early morning ahead of me I'm gonna get going. Its was nice to meet you Trevor," Carter said as he stood and again offered his hand to Trevor who shook it in return. Carter the focused on Chase and Chloe, "and as for you two, it was definitely my pleasure," he softly kissed each girl's hand before turning and walking towards the front doors of the club.

Chase, Chloe, and Trevor continued to talk, joke, and dance together until deciding to call it quits around one a.m.

**Chapter 7**

Chase checked her watch, noting that it was well after two a.m. She had walked with Chloe to Trevor's house, making sure that he got home o.k. Then it was a quick trip two streets over to Chloe's home. Once she was satisfied that her friends were home safely, she had begun to make her own way home. She leisurely strolled down the sidewalk, deciding at the last second to detour through Garden Park. Chase made her way to the swings, choosing the one in the middle to rest in. She pushed her foot against the ground to start a slow, gentle, and relaxing swing. Chase closed her eyes as she let the cool night air brush against her warm body.

He didn't expect to see anyone as he walked through the park. He had been on his way to one of the many clubs within the city in search of tonight's prey. Now he was hungrily gazing at the beautiful girl swinging mere feet from him. With a predator's stealth he stepped from the shadow of the trees toward the unsuspecting girl. He watched her for any sign that she was aware of his presence, but never saw any as he moved around behind her. He sniffed the air, catching her scent. She smelled of orange blossoms and vanilla, forcing his mind to fill with thoughts of what her blood would taste like. He stretched a hand closer to her hair, feeling it brush against his fingers as she swung back and forth in front of him. He repressed the growl that threatened to give him away. He was about to make his move, when suddenly the ring on her hand began to glow. He unnecessarily gasped as his ring also began to glow.

Chase quickly jumped up and away from the swing when she heard the sound behind her. She stood staring at a man who in turn was staring at the glowing ring on his hand. She quickly glanced at her own ring only to find that it too was glowing.

"Incredible," she said, "Two in one night."

The man raised his head to look at her, "What?"

Chase smiled, "You are the second person I've met tonight that was in my dream and whose ring glowed like mine."

Cooper narrowed his eyes in suspicion, "What are you talking about?"

Chase straightened her stance and placed her hands on her hips in response to the way he was looking at her. "I had a dream last night that included you, me, my friends, and two other guys. Me, you, and the other two guys all had identical rings that were glowing just like this," she said as she gestured first to her ring then to his, "The other person I met tonight was a man named Carter."

"Really. Did you and Carter figure out why the rings glow? Also, didn't you say that there was another guy with us…who is he," Cooper asked pretending to be interested as he inched closer to Chase. He was hungry and could hear the still pounding beat of her heart from the small fright of hearing him behind her.

Chase watched him closely as she answered his questions. _He must think that I'm blind. I can see that he is slowly moving closer to me,_ Chase thought. Chase never took her eyes off of him, but somehow he managed to move from his spot to intimately close behind her and wrap his arms around her small body.

Cooper heard her gasp of surprise and felt her confusion in response to his movement. Super human speed, just one of the many natural vampire powers we acquire, Cooper thought as he inhaled the intoxicating scent of fear that now rolled off of the girl. He lowered his mouth next to her ear, "You're mine little girl. Didn't your parents ever teach you not to talk to strangers?" He breathed in her scent again as he licked the skin that lay just over the life giving nourishment he desired, "Mmmm…so sweet…I just know that your blood is going to taste so good…" he trailed off with a growl. Like any other vampire, Cooper was caught up in the moment and failed to notice that someone new was about to interrupt his meal.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you vampire."

Cooper growled in frustration at the interruption. He tightened his hold on Chase and whirled them both around to face the present distraction. At first glance Cooper thought that the man before them would be his dessert, but his vampire senses soon told him otherwise. He shook his head to push back the all consuming feeling of hunger. _Well…well…what have we here? _

Cooper scented the air again, separating the scent of the girl from the supernatural being in front of them, "Go away little kitty. The girl is mine," he growled.

"No she's not. Now let her go," the deep growl said, causing a shiver to go through Chase's body.


End file.
